According to statistics, about 3.3 million metric tonnes of plastic ended up in landfills in India in 2019. Aditya Banger (17), a native of Bhilwara, Rajasthan, recycles plastic bottles, wrappers, and covers to manufacture cloth to minimize the strain on the environment.
“The process takes one or two days, but the cloth created is tougher and more durable than conventional cotton,” Aditya, a Class 12 student at Mayo College in Rajasthan, explains in an interview.
His firm, Trash to Treasure, was founded in January 2021 and recycles up to 10 tonnes of plastic each day to manufacture cloth.
Innovative textile
Aditya, who comes from a textile industry family, visited China for business two years ago. He was on a trip with his uncle, the owner of Kanchan India Limited, to explore new fabric production processes.
“That’s when I discovered a device that was transforming vast amounts of plastic garbage into cloth. “It not only saves garbage going to landfills, but it also produces high-quality material and provides jobs locally,” Aditya explains.
When they returned, Aditya, who was in Class 10, sold his family on the idea of starting a company creating cloth from plastic. His uncle and dad agreed and backed him in his endeavor. Aditya established a manufacturing plant in Bhilwara by cooperating with a foreign firm.
“The parent firm, Kanchan India Limited, for whom the cloth would be created, sponsored the initiative,” Aditya explains.
Recycles 10 Tonnes of Plastic
When the lockdowns were lifted in January 2021, Aditya began sourcing plastic debris from all around the country. He made contact with local garbage collection centers and bought PET-grade plastic for Rs 40 per kilogram.
When the garbage arrives at the facility. It is properly cleaned, the labels are removed, and the waste is allowed to dry. To eliminate harmful substances, they are cut into thin flakes and melted. When molten plastic, commonly known as a plastic filament, cools, it solidifies into the fiber.
“The fibre is spun into yarn and combined with cotton to create fabric.” “At the moment, the fabric is created by the parent firm and then sold to other companies who will make clothing out of it,” Aditya explains.
Aditya claims to have recycled 10 tonnes of plastic every day to date. However, obtaining the same is proving to be too expensive for his company. He now solicits plastic debris directly from people who collect it for recycling.
“The plastic must be PET quality and cannot be washed or cleaned.” “It may be given to our facility in its current state, and we will clean it before utilising it for yarn,” Aditya explains.